Is There Anything Other Than Aramark?

As Editor-in-Chief of Calliope Literary Magazine, it upsets me that if we ever hold an event for our reading, we cannot provide Dunkin Donuts coffee to our guests. This university’s deal with Aramark is frightening; the food monopoly of the college is Aramark.

I cannot complain because I occasionally enjoy a trip to Dansbury for lunch, but why can’t the students choose who caters their events held on campus?

I know I’d really enjoy having Panera or Salad Works cater our events. It’s our budget money, so why is there an insistence on using Aramark?

When I want to purchase a few grapes before class and my total comes to almost four dollars, I’m a little beside myself. In turn, if I want to provide healthy snacking before or during the event I’m hosting, a plate of fruit would cost a fortune from Aramark.

So here’s my complaint to Aramark: You know we’re poor college students who owe thousands of dollars in student loan debt. Why must you force us to eat your food and pay a fortune for it? We live in a democratic society and have the free choice of what we want to eat. Therefore, why does the school allow for such a monopoly to occur on campus? Shouldn’t they be supporting student choice when it comes to food?

I may have a solution. Instead of Aramark calling the shots on where food is distributed on campus, I would prefer the catering of my events to be done by the students from the Hotel Restaurant Management program on campus.

These students are the ones learning about how to run a restaurant, so why not let them practice during club events? It would be lovely to not only show off the campus event, but also give the people attending the events an idea about how the students in that program are learning to cater.

I know we do not have a culinary program on campus, but did anyone ever question why? Why wouldn’t students want other students catering their events? This is a university and a learning facility where students should learn how to be the most well-rounded they can be. Aramark puts a halt on that.

All in all, get educated on Aramark. I say the whole agreement with the school is a sham to make money. After googling more information about Aramark, I saw that I am not the only student who feels this way, either.